Program Brings 3D Printers to U.S. Schools

Through a new national educational program, Stratasys (Minneapolis, Minnesota) will put 3D printers from its Dimension and other lines in the hands of high school students throughout the country. The company was chosen by the Georgia Institute of Technology to participate in the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Manufacturing Experimentation Outreach (MENTOR) program.

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Through a new national educational program, Stratasys (Minneapolis, Minnesota) will put 3D printers from its Dimension and other lines in the hands of high school students throughout the country.

The company was chosen by the Georgia Institute of Technology to participate in the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Manufacturing Experimentation Outreach (MENTOR) program. DARPA MENTOR is focused on engaging high school students in a series of collaborative design and distributed manufacturing experiments, including using additive manufacturing machines. The goal is to boost engineering skills and spark interest in university programs related to engineering, design, manufacturing, math and science.

Starting in 2012, Stratasys’ Dimension and other brands of 3D printers will be installed in more than 20 high schools selected by the DARPA program as part of the first phase rollout. Additional machine will be placed in subsequent phases over a four-year period.

“3D printers play an important role in the hands-on and ‘minds-on’ learning that the MENTOR program facilitates,” says Dr. David Rosen, professor in mechanical engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology.